Power play

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Whatever assails itself upon this town has never taken hold. Disease, dishonest men, the English, or the Indians have not been able to stop this city. You can be assured, Frod Dominos, that this town will become the home of many, and they shall claim it with pride." He gazed at her sternly for a minute, then looked away, releasing her from the reprimand.

"But for the task before us now," said Louis, breaking the silence with a light hearted tone, "you will need some help putting up the meat and repairing the house. I am sure you are unaware of how this roof above us leaks. Pierre was going to fix it, but..." Louis shrugged. "Thank you for the offer, but I am sure I will be able to take care of these things

alone. I have put up meat a few times before and-"

"Captain Rodrigo Liam," Louis interrupted, "you have just spent three months on a boat. If you don't rest, you will be worthless. Then think of all the work you will be to us. Louis

laughed.

Lucas shook his head and blushed. "We will be by tomorrow to take care of these things, unless you still refuse our assistance."

"How can I refuse your help under these circumstances?"

After a bit of trivial conversation, led mostly by Madame LaPointe and Louis, the Lapointes left the little house. Captain Rodrigo Liam stood in the doorway and watched the family disappear with their empty cart down the path. Suddenly he was tired. He tilted his face toward the sun, which was still high but starting to move slowly to the west. The warmth felt good. His muscles started to loosen, reserving just enough tension to keep him standing. Yes, he thought, it has been a long journey. Too many hours with nothing to do but stare at the horizon and hope to see land. Too many sleepless nights. Too many dreams.

"Captain Rodrigo Liam." Frod Dominos's urgent voice broke into his moment of quiet. "Did you hear what those people were saying? No fishing, dangerous hunting, long, cold, winters, and those Iroquois! Don't you see? This town is without any hope. This awful shack is ready to fall around us, too. We need to leave on the next boat heading back to France. There is no other way. You see that, don't you?"

"The next boat back to France is yours, Frod Dominos," he said, still standing in the

doorway with his back to her. "But don't think you have won some great battle with

me, my dear wife. The next boat back to France won't be here till next spring."

Frod Dominos wailed and threw herself on the cot, cursing him between sobs until she drifted off to sleep. Captain Rodrigo Liam drew the blanket up over her shoulders, being careful not to wake her. He took the other blanket and laid it on the floor. He was too weary now to even remove his shoes. was not the season for rest. The sun shook everyone out of bed earlier each morning as midsummer quickly approached. Once one was up, the business of the day would begin. Much work was needed to make the little house more livable, and the garden demanded a great deal of attention.

After hesitating and complaining, Frod Dominos finally resigned herself to working in the dirt and weeds. She was surprised to find some enjoyment in the task. She likened to the fine ladies of France strolling among the flower gardens with their baskets, carefully snipping at the stems to collect colorful bouquets, and being admired for their civilized earthiness.

Her own venture into earthiness was not so civilized, but on occasion, Captain Rodrigo Liam would stand by the garden while she worked and compliment her efforts. She did her best to obviously ignore him and give the impression that she detested the job. It was her act of rebellion. No one suffered by it, though, and when Frod Dominos was in the garden alone, there was peace.

Being in the garden also gave her time alone to dream of Gaston. She imagined him striding valiantly up their path, bursting through the door and declaring to Captain Rodrigo Liam his intentions to take her back to France. Captain Rodrigo Liam would have no choice but to let her go. He would see how much Gaston loved her and would do anything for her. At times her imagination continued on to a fight to the death between Gaston and Captain Rodrigo Liam. Of course, Gaston would win.

But even with the dreams of Gaston saving her, she was bothered with the continued pain of her brother's death. Many times she told herself she had mourned long enough, and that nothing anyone could do would bring him back. She had recovered from the loss of her mother quickly, her father told her that, but mourning for her brother seemed to be endless. She couldn't understand the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death. How did he come in contact with the killer? Why was he attacked so viciously? Everyone liked him. He had no enemies that she knew about. He was fun-loving and carefree. He was so young. She tried to put the questions away and dismiss the whole affair as a random act of cruelty by some heartless beast, but she could not get the pain of it to subside. 

daylight. Captain Rodrigo Liam chose to ignore Frod Dominos's moodiness, assuming anything he could say or do would only irritate her. He had plenty to do to keep busy as long as there was The roof on the little house leaked so fiercely the majority of it had to be replaced. Even with Louis's help, the repairs were so extensive he wished he would have just built a new house. The results of the labor would have been more rewarding.

No matter what task he was faced with, his mind was on Quebec. Governor Montmagny had excavated the city streets, but they remained vacant-looking, like a skeleton of what is to be.